Rachel A. Griffin is used to students she doesn’t know showing up for her office hours here at Southern Illinois University. Sometimes they come to see her on her first day of class for the semester. The stories, by now, are familiar: Often a friend has taken a course from Ms. Griffin, associate professor in the department of communication studies, and thinks she’ll have good advice. The student sits down and tearfully describes a problem he or she is counting on Ms. Griffin to help solve. Maybe it’s how to make the transition to the campus or what to do about a much-needed financial-aid check that has yet to arrive. "I’m clearly not a financial-aid adviser, but what do you do in that moment?" says Ms. Griffin. "You hand the student a Kleenex, and you get on the phone and see what you can do."

November 8, 2015 ・ From Chronicle of Higher Education